by Jarrett Bell, USA TODAY Sports

by Jarrett Bell, USA TODAY Sports

PHILADELPHIA â?? Cary Williams couldn't be serious as he tried to put Sunday's upset loss at Minnesota in perspective.

Could he?

"I'm glad we lost," the Philadelphia Eagles cornerback said Tuesday, holding court in the locker room after practice. "We needed to get knocked off, to re-evaluate and get better."

No doubt, the Eagles (8-6) have much to chew on after their five-game winning streak was snapped on Sunday with a 48-30 defeat to the Vikings.

But to consider it a good loss?

Well, Williams went on to explain that while he never wants to lose a game, the defeat provided the silver lining of a "wakeup call" for a team that has emerged as a playoff contender faster than most expected under first-year coach Chip Kelly.

If there was any inkling for the Eagles to get a bit full of themselves with success, Williams hopes that the embarrassing defeat squashed that and underscored the need for sharpened focus.

"I'm not glad we lost the game," he told USA TODAY Sports. "But it's a humbling experience. I'm glad it knocked us off our high horse."

The Eagles, leading the NFC East, host the NFC North-leading Chicago Bears on Sunday night and could finish the regular season needing to win the finale at Dallas to claim the division crown.

Now is no time to lose sight of what's at stake.

"If anyone feels like we don't have room for improvement," Williams added, "they should know now what can happen on any given Sunday."

An improving defense that had played nine consecutive games without allowing more than 20 points was blistered by the Vikings, allowing 455 yards and victimized by six big plays of at least 20 yards.

Williams concludes that his unit was outplayed physically and emotionally.

"To some degree, we came out flat," he said.

Now comes one of the NFL's hottest offenses, with Jay Cutler throwing to the league's most productive wide receiver tandem in Brandon Marshall and Alshon Jeffrey, with versatile Matt Forte in the backfield. Chicago ranks second in the NFL, averaging 29 points a game.

McCoy, the league's leading rusher with 1,343 yards, had just eight carries on Sunday.

Coordinator Pat Shurmur contended McCoy's lack of runs were a matter of circumstance, including the catch-up mode caused by the early deficit and favorable matchups in the passing game against a Minnesota defense down to its fourth and fifth cornerbacks.

And the fact that Philadelphia ranks last in the league for time of possession?

"What's most important," Shurmur said, "is what you do with the ball when you have it."

This is what happens when a team loses for the first time in six weeks.

Second-guessing. Soul-searching.

But it's not as gloomy as it could have been.

Despite the thud of a loss, the Eagles kept their one-game lead for first place.

Thank you, Dallas Cowboys.

"The mood on the plane coming back was definitely a somber one for the majority of the flight," center Jason Kelce told USA TODAY Sports. "Then once word spread that Dallas had lost, that definitely livened up the plane quite a bit. That was a big deal for us, and our chances of doing something special here."